I will not go streaking this summer, but...

Sorry, Will Farrell, I will not be be streaking with you this summer.

Runners World is kicking off a summer streaking challenge: to run at least a mile a day from Memorial Day to the Fourth of July.  They did a similar winter challenge from Thanksgiving to New Years.  And I will not go streaking this summer. I have never been a streaker, in any sense of the word, and I don't intend to now.  I had a buddy of mine who had a 1,000+ day running streak going, and then got sidelined.  Even when I wasn't running every day, but 5-6 days a week, I got sidelined with ITBS.  Slightly less running and lots more cross-training = much better racing...for me.  That's not for everyone, and I know that.  So, I will not go streaking this summer.
But I will also be running through the sprinklers!
I had a very hard workout this morning, and it was 85 and humid.  I was so happy when I got to the track and the sprinklers were on.  They actually spilled onto the track, so every lap at the 200m mark, I got misted!  Thank God, because it was hot as hell!  I am a baby about the heat, and tend to melt/lose energy super fast, which I did not want to happen with this workout:

2.5 mile warm-up; 6 x 150 meter strides; 1x 800, 4x400, 4x200; aim for 2:55 for the 800, 2 lap jog; 86, 85, 84, 83 for the 400s (1 lap jog between each); aim for 39-40 for the 200s (200 jog between each). 2.5 mile cool down. Total=9.5 miles

 It was very tough, and I started sweating during the warm up.  This was how it turned out:
So, there was no blowing up, but couldn't quite hit the scheduled times.
800: 3:00
400s 85, 86, 85, 87
200s: 42, 42, 42, 42 - I could not go any faster on these.

It's so funny - during 5k/10k/marathon buildup, I could always go much faster than the times listed.  But during this mile stuff, I either hit it exactly, or come up a bit short.  I am definitely at my max with this speed.  There is no "oops, that was a fast one!"  Only, "nope, couldn't go any harder."   But I was very grateful for the sprinklers - getting doused each lap not only was physically refreshing, but mentally refreshing too.  I felt like a cross between these two images.  During the cooldown, as I was wiping sweat from my eyes and just trying to finish, all I could think about was "It was this hot for the Boston Marathon this year," and that is humbling, because it meant that some 20,000 people ran the whole 26.2 in this weather - I could not do that.
And for that, I am grateful to be currently focusing on the mile, not the marathon.  And grateful for sprinklers too.